All posts tagged ‘Smallville Season 11’

When DC Comics announced their New 52 initiative last fall, the part that struck me as the most revolutionary was not about content.

It was about their choice to make their weekly print comics available as digital comics for the same price on the same day through ComiXology.

The direct market of local comic book shops has long been the only way to distribute weekly comics. It can be an oasis for the long-time comic fan and yet also a barrier to new readers. Some local stores are wonderful, others are clubby and less welcoming to newcomers and some people are not close enough to have access to a shop at all.

With newly released DC comics available digitally on the same day, at the instant touch of a button, a whole new market hypothetically opens up. Marvel Entertainment quickly did the same with their new releases. With the big two companies plus a number of prominent independent companies making their comics available digitally, it’s a good time to have an interest in comics and a tablet device on which to read them.

ComiXology is at the center of all this. According to CEO David Sternberger, there have been 75 million downloads of comics via their app platform and one-third of that total has happened in 2012. Comics began in the Golden Age, morphed into the Silver and Bronze Ages but this decade may well be the beginning of the digital age.

Promotional image for Smallville Season 11, available digital first from ComiXology.

Like most comic readers, I’ve had a lot of questions about ComiXology, how it works, what kind of audience they’re drawing, and where they see digital comics going in the future.

Steinberger agreed to an interview to address some of those questions. While some of his answers–such as about demographics–are less specific that I was hoping, the answers overall are enlightening.

GeekMom: How did the site get started? What led you to a comics app?

David Steinberger:

We’re celebrating our 5th Anniversary this year at San Diego Comic-Con and our 3rd Year App-versary!

ComiXology initially began as a way to bridge the digital divide between brick and mortar retailers and their customers with our Pull List application. That took off and then we added digital comics with the advent of the iPhone. To date, we’ve had over 75 million downloads of comic books and graphic novels on our digital comics platform that is just 3 years old…and one third of those downloads have happened in 2012, so it’s been a wild, expansive year for us!

But one thing I’d like to clear up is that we are not just an app — we’re a true buy once, read anywhere platform. That means when you sign up for an account you can buy and read on the iPhone, iPad, Android devices, Kindle Fire and even the Web. Our great shopping and reading experiences, added together with being able to take your comics with you anywhere is why our customers love us!

That’s the only conclusion I can draw after it was announced by Smallville Season 11 writer Bryan Q. Miller in a TV Guide interview that Batman will finally be making his first appearance in the Smallville universe, in issue #5, accompanied by a female sidekick revealed to be none other than Stephanie Brown as Nightwing.

Smallville Season 11 is a digital DC comic that is a continuation of the popular Smallville television series that ran for ten seasons on the WB/CW networks. Print editions appear after the shorter digital chapters, which are available for 99 cents at Comixology.

It says something about her place in the comic book world that the news of Batman’s long-awaited appearance in the popular series was lost on comic sites amid all the cheering for Stephanie Brown’s second return from the world of dead and limboed heroes.

The long journey from her creation in 1992 is an example of not only how badly some female characters are treated in the DC Universe but also how sometimes even editorial fiat isn’t enough to destroy a popular character. Fan support, creator support, and the burgeoning digital market can open the way to a return.

Happy Comic Release Day! Welcome to another installment of GeekMom Comic Book Corner, where we recap our adventures in comics for the week.

Black Canary Says You Must Read Comics (photo by Corrina Lawson but all credit should go to Canary)

Corrina

I attended the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo aka C2E2 on Sunday and picked up a comics from one of my favorite independent companies, Spinner Rack Comics. I picked up the latest Honor Brigade, a comic my kids adore especially ToyBoy: What Happens in Vegas. I also picked up author Tom Stillwell’s new teen/adult urban fantasy comic, Underneath. Highly recommended. There are too few great superhero stories for kids. Honor Brigade is one of them.

Avengers Assemble Issue #2 Review – Dakster Sullivan

Avengers Assemble Issue #2 Copyright Marvel

In Avengers Assemble #2, we find out a little more about the villainous group, The Zodiac. In the first few pages, we learn about their agenda and reasons for being on Earth.

After the dialogue between The Zodiac and an unknown power, the story picks back up in Latveria with the fight between Taurus, Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye and Black Widow. In a knock out fight, Iron Man is badly beaten and taken by his teammates to the helicarrier.

After Captain America approaches the team with Hulk, we learn of Hulk’s run-in with Aquarius in the dessert. The rest of the story is mostly dialogue amongst the team. Instead of the comical banter in issue #1, this issue the dialogue between the characters was more touching than comical. Hulk and Thor had some touching dialogue that I really enjoyed. The team brings their attention to the item Taurus was after and learn that it’s an ultimate nullifier. We are left seeing the Avengers under attack by The Zodiac team.

Overall, I am really enjoying this series and it is one of the few I actually buy the print version of. It’s fast-paced and full of the excitement and action that I look for in a comic book. I look forward to the next issue being released in May.

What I’m Reading This Week – Smallville Season 11 #1 — Kelly Knox

Smallville Issue #1

Smallville has always been one of my guilty pleasures. Although I didn’t watch for a few years in the middle of its run, the last season pulled me back in and I watched it to the end. When I heard that DC Comics was starting a new weekly digital comic series based on the show, I was optimistic. Smallville staff writer Bryan Q. Miller is the writer for the new comic series; I loved his work on the Stephanie Brown Batgirl. All of this added up to some high expectations… so did Smallville Season 11 #1 live up to them?

It did!

Smallville Season 11 introduces us to a Metropolis where Clark is the new hero of a grateful world. As the series kicks off, Lex Luthor has his eye on the Man of Steel, and so did I when they showed his new costume. In fact, I might have gawked for a couple of minutes. But hey, I stared dreamily at Tom Welling during every episode of the show, so it was just like old times.

Lois Lane, Chloe Sullivan, and Oliver Queen put in just a brief appearance in the first issue, and I’m anxious to see more of them as the series goes on. Smallville Season 11 #1 left me wanting more, and with a low price of just $0.99, I’m willing to give my Friday nights back to Smallville.

Looking for something else, readers? Check out this week’s listed books from DC and Marvel: